Snow or water ski device



p 1952 R. v. JENNINGS SNOW OR WATER SKI DEVICE 1 Filed March 27, 1948 INVENTOR. ya ro/V s w .%M W W J Patented Sept. 2, 1952 UNITED S ATES PATENT OFFICE SNOW R- WATER DEVICE Richard V. Jennings, Pickney, Mich. Application March 27, 1948, Serial No. 17,515

, r 1 This invention relates'to winter or watersports apparatusand, in particular, to ski devices.

, One object of this invention is to provide a snow or water ski .device having skis as runners which are so interconnected and provided with controlling devices that an inexperienced person can control the action of the skis with skill and precision.

..Another object of the invention is to provide a snow or water ski device having skis as runners which are; .interconnected'by a parallel link mechanism whereby the skis are maintainedcom' stantly in parallelism yet may be steered merely by the operator leaning to one side or the other.

Another object is to provide a snow or water-ski device having skis as runners interconnected by a parallel .link mechanism wherein the links are also provided with universal joints'such that one ski may tilt longitudinally relatively to'the other ski so as to facilitate traversing an uneven surface, as in going over humps or waves.

Another object is to provide a snow or water ski device of the foregoing character, wherein a handle is provided connected to one or both skis by the acid of which the operator by leaning to one side or the other may more easily tilt the skis and thereby execute turns quickly and easily.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a ski device according to a preferred form of the invention;

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary side elevation of the foot supporting portion of the ski device;

Figure 3 is a side elevation, partly in section, of one end of the rear ski-connecting link; and

Figure 4 is a View, partly in section, of one end of the forward ski-connecting link.

Referring to the drawings in detail, Figure 1 shows a ski device generally designated l0, according to a preferred form of. the invention, as including as runners a pair of skis H interconnected by' a connecting and control mechanism generally designated 12. The .skis ll may be of any suitable material, such as wood, but in the drawings they are shown as made of channel metal such as channel aluminum. For use in the water they are, of course, preferably made of buoyant material. Each ski is provided with a block I3 of wood or other suitable material inserted in the channel thereof at approximately the midpoint of the ski and secured thereto in any suitable manner, as by the fasteners M.

The connecting and control mechanism [2 is mounted upon these blocks l3, or directly upon 1 claim. (01. 280 -21) the skis H themselves, if the skis are made of wood. The connecting and control mechanism l2 includesa set of posts [5, l6 and I1 having base plates l8, l9 and 20 respectively fastened to each block IS, the posts 15 and 16 supporting a horizontal rod 21 and each post I! curving into a horizontal portion 22 connected as by welding to the post lBona slightly lower level than the rod 2| so as to serve as a heel rest for the shoe S of the wearer.- The rod 2| is provided with a transverse rod 23 serving as a toe rest for the shoe S and having retaining members 24 at the opposite ends thereof. The rod 2| is also provided with an extension rod 25 secured to the cross rod 23 and extending in a forward direction.

Secured as by welding to the forward end of each extension rod 25 is a short sleeve .or bushing 26 (Figure 4) in which is J'Ournaled the stem or stub shaft 21 .of a universal joint yoke, 28 connected by the pivot pin 29 to a block 30 which is, in turn, connected by the pivot pin 3| to the mating universal joint-yoke '32, the whole forming one of a pair of forward universal joints. each generally designated 33. A retaining collar 34 is welded or otherwise secured to the outer end of the stub shaft 21 beyond the sleeve or bushing 26. The opposite forward universal joints 33 are connected by a forward link 35 in the form of a rod which, by reason of the construction shown in Figure 4,-is freely rotatable due to the mounting of thestems 21 in the bushings 26. At the same time, the universal joints 33 may rise and fall independently of one another, as the skis I l tilt while passingover uneven ground.

Secured as by welding to the junctions of each post l6 and rod 2| is the horizontal portion 36 of a tubular control handle or lever 31, the vertical portion 38 of which terminates in ,a hand grip 39. Secured as by welding in the inner end bore 40 of each horizontal portion 3.6 (Figure 3) is the stem 4| of a universal joint yoke 42. The yoke 42 is connected by the pivot pin 43 to a block 44 which, in turn, is connected by the pivot pin 45 to the universal joint yoke 46, these parts as a whole forming one of a pair of rearward universal joints, each generally designated 41.. The yoke 46 has a stem 48 loosely and rotatably mounted in a bushing .or sleeve 49 and is retained therein'by-awasher 50, mounted upon the headed reduced diameter portion 5-! thereof. The sleeve or bushing 49 is secured as by welding to a tubular link 52, the opposite end of which is similarly connected to a similar bushing 49 rotatably supporting the stem 48 of a similar rearward universal joint 41.

In the operation of the invention, on a snowy slope the user or operator stands on the rods 22, 2|, 23 as indicated by the dotted lines representing his shoes S in Figure 2, and gives a push with one foot to start himself down the slope. As he descends the slope, he steers the scooter by leaning to one side or the other, thereby shifting weight. toward -the side 'in which the turn is to be made." Als in" well-packed or crusty snow, a certain amount of turning can also be made by grasping the hand grip 39 and swinging the handles 31 to one side'inthe direction of the turn. This action rocks the skis l I about their longitudinal axes, causing the turn" attached to the cross member. 52 or 35, or connectedby a V-shaped'bridle to the supporting structures mounted on the blocks l3, such as to the members 26, or attached to a harness around to be made. This rocking action of the skis is,

permitted by the universal joints 33 and 41.

As the device descends the slope, each ski ll may tilt relatively to the other in a lengthwise direction, as in, going over. humps, yet the skis will always be maintained substantially, parallel to, one another by the parallel links inv the form of the links 35 and'52 working in, conjunction With'the universal joints 33 and 41 and their rotatable connections within the sleeves 25 and 49. Thus when one ski H starts turning, for example the right-hand ski H to the right, in response to the operator's leaning to the right, the other. ski H1 is. automatically pulled and tilted in the same direction by the. connecting and control mechanism l2, including. the links 35 and 52. f

In this manner, the most inexperienced operator-or'user can control the device perfectly at all times and can steer it quickly and precisely to avoid obstacles in his path. Since the handles 31 are at the side of the operator, they are always accessible, yet not in a position where they would injure him in the event of his; being pushed-forward. Furthermore, unlike the case with ordinary skis, the operator is not strapped tothe skis but in. the event that he believes the speed or the slope is becoming dangerousv and is unable to steer out of the way, he can in an emergency jump off and free himself instantly. The connecting andcontrol mechanism [2, including the links 35 and 52 and universal joints 33 and 41 automatically prevents the unpleasant and often dangerous experience of novices in having their skis separate outward or cross inward, since the skis of the present scooter are always maintained in substantially parallel positions. Accidents caused by the separating or crossing of the skis in; ordinary skis thus cannot happen in the use of the snow scooter of this invention. The user of the present device, therefore, is enabled toexperience all the thrills and satisfaction of skiing without undergoing the lon'grigorous and often hazardous period of trainingrequired in learning to use ordinary skis in very hilly forested country. j 3

Another advantage of'the ski-device of the present invention is that by reason of the par-- allel link and universal joint construction f theconnecting and control mechanism' I2, the user on reaching the bottom of the slope can instantlyfold the-skis ll alongside one another like folding a parallel ruler, such as is used in naviga tion. When the device is folded in this manner, the user can throw it over his shoulder or onto an automobile or ski tow and walk or ride either the body with a quick release connection. The handles 31, 39 in the water ski device are used in a similar manner as on snow, and in a similar way, the operatormay lean to one side or the other in executing turns.

As in snow, the turn is brought about mainly by the action of the upwardly curved forward ends of the skis or runners I l which, whentilted sidewi fi, .SBrve to direct the skistoward the side to which they are turned, .The individual tilting action of the skis when used in water. is also useful when a wave will tilt one ski more than the. other, the universal joints permitting such tilting yet retaining the parallel relationship of the skis. In the event that the operator loses his balance, or for any other reason desires to free himself from the device, he can jump to one side or the other or drop backward into the spacebetween the skis at an instants notice since he is not strapped-to the device. 1

What I claim is l r ,A ski device, comprising apair of laterallyspaced elongated runners arranged substantially parallel to one another, a footsupporting structure mounted on eachv runner, a'pair of spaced substantially parallel linksconnected to and extending between saidrunners, pivotal connecting devices arranged between said links and said runners, said pivotal connecting devices having uni versal joints with rotatable couplings connected between said runners and said links, said univer sal joints being constructed and arranged to ef' fect free individual rocking of said runners relatively to one another in all directions, and a pair of control members having bent lower ends con-' nected to and extending upward respectively from said supporting structures substantially to the hand level of an operator standingupon said supporting structures. H

. RICHARD V. JENNINGS.

vREFERENQES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number France May 11, 1936 

